Yesterday was pretty amazing. I was lucky enough to be invited to the last ever Richard Bacon show on 5Live – possibly the best show on radio. Nobody seems to know about it though! Bacon invited 200 loyal members of the ‘SHH’ down to BBC Radio Theatre, London.

The Guardian wrote a nice article to offer some explanation for the uninitiated. Nobody seems to understand why I made such a pilgrimage from Nottingham for a radio show. It required meticulous planning and a night with no sleep, but it was such an experience. It was quite an odd, surreal experience spending the evening on oneself in London before driving back in the early hours.
We were each presented with the much-coveted ‘Special Half Hour’ badge as we entered the radio theatre and I was co-incidentally sat next to not only Olly Mann of ‘Answer Me This’ podcast fame, but a chap from the same area as me. Also sat nearby was Quentin Wilson and Ash Atalla, Producer of The Office.

We had a discussion about whether or not it’s ok to steal from supermarkets if you’re poor, and the night culminated in a funeral for the Special Half Hour (‘SHH’ when mentioned outside of the time slot). We sang Jerusalem to mark the show’s passing. It was, as always, difficult to interpret the true tone of the show, the genuinity of the fans and the sincerity of the presenters. It’s a typically British phenomenon that we treat everything with an undertone of humour and slight wry sarcasm. We, the English can be serious, but never genuinely earnest — a quality that separates us from our fat cousins across the pond.
I did find that not only is Richard Bacon very Alan Partridge-esque in real life, but as some listeners have said before, very self-indulgent. He is apparently not modest about his radio empire at all – with millions of followers on Twitter and thousands in the Special Half Hour facebook group. He likes to cmmand us to cheer or clap and does tend to boast at any opportunity.

We’ve become something of a cult, now destined to be disbanded; the SHH consigned to fade from our collective memory.
At least we all now have our ‘SHH’ badges to remember the last 14 months or so of enjoying this short-lived, but brilliant show. 10pm-1am will never be the same again; I now have to listen to some guy I’ve never heard of. It has been a true honour and a privilege.

Went for a drive and a ride today around Matlock. I had no specific location to ride as I don’t know the paths around there, but I did find the start of the Pennine Trail, so I decided to ride some of it…and back. Very picturesque too. It’s got a wicked train tunnel part-way down too, as it follows a former train track.

Took some pics, which I’ll upload on Facebook probably.

This was my route:

I have also started Twittering/Tweeting recently! Pick me up.

Went for a bit of an impromptu ride today around Clumber Park. Parked up in a layby off the A614 and rode into Clumber via this cycle route. It was a bit of a ride, but more fun than going through the front. I find that I run out of room when I go to Clumber, despite its size. It’s quite difficult to get lost.

Might try somewhere in Derbyshire next time.

A few pics from Clumber:

This was my route: